It Wasn’t Just Japanese Americans Who Fell Under Suspicion in World War II. So Did Italian Americans.

John N. Romano is an attorney in Yonkers. His own World War II experience was as a member of the First Marine Division, C Company, 1BN, 7th Regiment that served on the front line in China during the Nationalists and Communist Civil War. This article was first published in the Yonkers Historical Society quarterly journal.

In 1942, the FBI
began a program to produce and augment fear, distrust and anxiety in
Americans of Italian heritage by searching their apartments at night,
arresting them without warrants in daytime, keeping them in custody
for questioning and examining the parents of sons who were U.S. Army
Air Corps officers.

I was witness to
such an action on midnight in 1942 at 52 Maple Street in Yonkers.
The incident occurred in a six-family cold water tenement, occupied
by approximately five Italian families and one American family. Two
FBI agents knocked on our apartment door. My mother, a naturalized
citizen, said, “What do you want?”

“We are looking
for a transmitter,” they answered.

“What is a
transmitter?” my mother asked. They told her, it’s a radio
sending messages to an Italian submarine that was in the Hudson
River. We have to search your apartment now.” Our denials had no
meaning as they recklessly searched our apartment from room to room.

They saw three
unoccupied beds and asked, “Who sleeps in those beds?” I
answered, “My brother Joe. He’s in the Marine Corps. My brother
Anthony. He’s serving in a U.S. submarine. And my brother Pat.
He’s serving on a U.S. Navy destroyer.” They all volunteered to
serve the country.

It had no impact on
them. They looked directly in my eyes, unashamed, aggressive,
belligerent and arrogant. Then they left.

They went to the
next apartment door and repeated the same abusive questioning with
Mrs. Molly Paese who had four sons in the service, and for Mrs. Bove
on the second floor who also had four sons in the service. They were
effective. They scared the hell out of us all. They made us feel as
if we were the enemy. They did not search the “American”
family’s apartment.

There were other
knocks on the door from the U.S. Government during 1943-1945 in the
same house.

Mrs. Paese heard a
knock on her door, one that informed her that her son, Sergeant Curly
Paese was shot down and killed in Germany.

Mrs. Bove heard a
second knock as well, to be informed that her son, Lieutenant Bove,
fighter pilot, also was killed overseas.

My mother, Virginia
Romano heard three knocks on her door. The first informed her that
her son, Corporal Joseph Romano was killed in action. The second
knock informed her that her son, Anthony was missing in action; he
was eventually found but was totally disabled for the rest of his
life. The third knock informed her that Pat was wounded with me
today.

The story of these
four knocks on Mama’s door remains with me today.

Oh yes, there were
other knocks on other doors on Maple Street as well, Mrs. DiResta’s
door, Mrs. DiGiacomo’s door, Mrs. Dominick Romano’s door, and
many others who were told that their loved ones were killed in action
during the War.

The FBI never
returned and prohibited its public disclosure by anyone. Our FBI
conducted this “Secret War”. The Herald Statesman, the Yonkers
Record and other newspapers would not publish this War story of the
Seventh Ward. The Yonkers Police Department quietly agreed to all
these actions and assigned their toughest officers with billy clubs
that were used on many an Italian Americans. Not one political,
religious, educational, business or labor leader would speak out
against it. The Seventh Ward was in total silence with all the other
Americans. If exposed, it would have created a deep morale problem
for the many, many Italian Americans in service of the country.¹

Some would say an
apology is necessary. Mama would have answered, “We do not want an
apology. As an American I forgive you.” We survived this ordeal
of persecution, prosecution and punishment because of our belief in
God, Country and Family, especially our mothers and fathers.

God Bless America.

___________________

¹Men and women of Italian heritage
were the largest ethnic group to serve in the American Armed Forces
during World War II.